Best PlacesCandler County, GA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Candler County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Candler County ranks 2,685th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a strong job market by a wide margin, and the cost of living against local pay is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Candler County
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
Candler County's strengths and weaknesses
Where Candler County ranks high
- Local economyBetter than 94% of counties
- Cheap childcare$502 a month, better than 90% of counties
- Tree shadeBetter than 73% of counties
- QuietBetter than 72% of counties
- State fiscal healthBetter than 69% of counties
Where Candler County ranks low
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 7% of counties
- Air qualityBetter than only 8% of counties
- Household income$50,415 median, better than only 9% of counties
- Heat safetyBetter than only 12% of counties
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 16% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Candler County
A household needs to earn about $46,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Candler County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $50,415, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses Candler County's effective rate of 0.96%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 9 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Candler County
Candler County's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Candler County.
Who works in Candler County, and how
Work in Candler County centers on health care & social and manufacturing. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 93%
- Work from home 4%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in Candler County
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Candler County.
Is Candler County growing, and who is moving in?
Candler County has grown about 2% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Treutlen County, GA.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Candler County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Candler County, month by month
Candler County sees roughly 83 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 63, with lows near 41. The comfortable stretch runs February through May, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 63° | 51° | 41° |
| April | 80° | 67° | 55° |
| July | 93° | 82° | 73° |
| October | 82° | 68° | 58° |
Flying in and out of Candler County
The nearest airport, Savannah/Hilton Head International, is about 54 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Charleston AFB/International, about 122 miles away.
The best schools in and around Candler County
Schools across Candler County average a C−, better than 25% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Metter Elementary SchoolC− · 27% proficient
Top middle schools
- Metter Middle SchoolD+ · 24% proficient
Top high schools
- Metter High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
- Metter College And Career AcademyD · 18% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Candler County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Candler County measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare Candler County against the other 3,143 counties.
Common questions about living in Candler County
Is Candler County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Candler County ranks 2,685th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on a strong job market, affordable childcare, and tree cover, and lowest on the cost of living against local pay and air quality. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Candler County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $173,223. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $50,415 median income, cost of living beats 7% of counties.
Is Candler County safe?
Candler County is safer than 48% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $331 per resident a year.
Compare Candler County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Candler County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Candler County represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
Candler County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Candler County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Candler County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Candler County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Candler County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Candler County detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program: population growth and net migration behind the population-change section.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.